Setting the mood for dining.

Lostvalleyguy

Lostvalleyguy

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Do you make food to eat or do you make it to dine?

Sitting in front of the TV watching the evening news and eating dinner is commonplace around here. I rarely use my dining table even if I have the time and make a good meal.

Sitting at a table with the cutlery and dishes laid out properly enhances the dining experience for me. It puts me in the mood to enjoy what I am eating rather than to top up the calories. The meal takes a little longer as I savor the food that I have created. A glass of the right wine to complement the meal completes the illusion.
 
I just eat while doing what ever else I'm doing at the moment, so I definitely make food just to eat. Never bothered to set up a table unless I've got friends coming over, don't see the point doing it for myself. That being said, I won't say no to a glass or two of good wine to make the meal a bit more special.
 
I do both. I think it's okay to just cook to eat from time to time, as it doesn't really have to be an extraordinary experience every time, but I do think it is important to work in actual dining from time to time just to remind ourselves to appreciate. I do both in phases. If I were in a busy or stressed out phase, then I usually just eat in front of the TV and try to just enjoy it as much as I can, but when I'm feeling more relaxed and jolly, I eat at the dining table and enjoy my meal quietly.
 
We only ever eat at the table. Sitting in front of the TV eating takes away our time together as a family. Eating at the table gives us a chance to have some time together. We also never answer a phone when we are eating either. If it is very urgent, family will leave a message (which we hear anyway) and we will ring back - otherwise they all know what time we sit down for a meal and avoid ringing us during that time.
 
I think eating at the table is a tradition that should be preserved. It is also better for digestion to take your time and to eat slowly. If you eat while watching a movie, for example, you tend to be concentrated on the action and just chug down your meal fast. At least that is the case with me.
 
I never eat at the table unless I am with other people. Even then, if I am entertaining I often use the table as a big buffet for people to get stuff off of, that they can carry over into my living room. I feel really weird sitting at my table by myself to eat something - it's kind of creepy. I don't want to sit there in silence and listen to myself crunch and chew on food. I need a TV on and a show to watch while I am eating.

I don't often drink alcohol with my meals, but rather wait until after I am done eating (and perhaps a relaxing bath) so that the food has settled in my stomach first. Then I crack open the Rum and put a movie on, lol.
 
We always have to eat on the table as the family. I can't exactly get away from that because I'm always the prayer leader, but whenever I miss lunch for example, no one complains when I eat wherever I want. It's just that, we have to leave more than enough food for everyone who hasn't eaten yet, and it's his or her decision if he or she still wants to eat or not.

But I do believe that eating on a table really sets up a fine mood for dining - but for some people I know, they like to try other things for dining - like for example, a late night picnic or hanging out in the living room to eat, haha.
 
I was raised around a kitchen table and family dinner was very important to my mother. The TV was definitely off and back then (not all that long ago) no one had cell phones anyway.

In college, a very dear friend continued this tradition (common in her family as well) and made Monday night family dinner for her own brother, me, and a few other friends. It became something I looked forward to every week.

When I got married, my husband and I, even without kids, always sat down at the table to eat dinner together. For the first 6 months, it was just a card table. But we enjoyed having that time together and made it a thing. So once we started adding kids to the mix, there was really no transition. We just added high chairs, booster seats, and plastic spoons!

Even now, I can't say that I "set a mood" or anything, which sounds like it should be romantic or something, but we definitely turn off the TV (and usually clean up the immediate area), and everyone comes to the table with hands washed. We are teaching our very young children to wait until everyone is served, to wait to be offered seconds, to chew with their mouths closed, to wait their turn for speaking. I mean, I think our biggest life lessons happen at the dinner table. This will always be really important to me.
 
At home we always set the table whenever we dine to eat. We see to it that it is organized and that we serve healthy deliciously tasting foods that the family will enjoy eating. We always eat together and it is already in our tradition that we inherited from our grandparents. It is also where we bond together as a family and at the same time it makes eating more comfortable and relaxing at the dining table.
 
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